My Approach
Looking for a therapist can be a lot, so I’d like to give you a sense of how I work. Trust takes time, and we’ll move at your pace. Rather than trying to fix what’s wrong, I see my role as helping you get curious about yourself, asking good questions and offering practices that help you notice what’s hard to see on your own. I believe real healing is possible, and that it grows out of the work we do together.
I work primarily from an Internal Family Systems (IFS) framework and am highly trained in EMDR, two approaches that complement each other well. IFS understands that we all have different parts, each holding its own experiences, beliefs, and protective strategies. You might notice a part of you that wants to push hard and a part that wants to shut down, or a critical voice that shows up right when you most need confidence. None of these parts are problems, and each one has been trying to help in its own way. Alongside them is a calm, grounded center within you, and our work is focused on reconnecting you with it. As you do, you can learn to make choices from that place rather than acting out of fear, pressure, or habits that aren’t helpful.
EMDR helps the nervous system process experiences that talking alone doesn’t always reach, and I often integrate the FLASH Technique as part of that work. EMDR is well known for trauma, and it can also help with anxiety, performance pressure, and old experiences that still feel present even when you know they’re over. When practical skills would help, I also draw on tools from ACT and DBT.
Who I Work With
I especially enjoy working with people who want to understand why they keep getting stuck in the same places and are ready to try something different. Some have been in therapy before and want deeper, more lasting change, while others want practical tools to feel better right away. Often it’s a bit of both. That might be a student facing anxiety before a big test or competition, or someone working through trauma or a significant loss.
There are a few groups I’ve worked closely with over the years. For nearly a decade I’ve held a contract with the University of Washington Intercollegiate Athletics to provide mental health care for student athletes, and I regularly receive student referrals from the UW Health and Wellness Center. My years as a social worker at the University of Washington Medical Center (UWMC) also give me a particular interest in supporting physicians, residents, and other medical professionals. Closer to home, I bring both clinical grounding and personal understanding to parents navigating the particular exhaustion and love of raising children with complex needs.
Background
I’ve been doing this work for over twenty years, in hospitals including Virginia Mason and the VA Puget Sound, as well as in public schools. The bulk of my career has been in inpatient psychiatry, including fifteen years at UWMC. Much of that work was being present with people in their hardest moments, and it showed me how much someone can recover from. For many years I also served as a clinical instructor for advanced MSW practicum students placed on the unit, which led to a clinical faculty appointment with the UW School of Social Work. I earned my MSW from the University of Washington in 2002. I’ve been in private practice with Cedar Tree Counseling Services since 2017.
What I offer
Individual counseling for adults (18 and over) in the following areas:
I draw from the following clinical perspectives:
Individual Clinical Supervision
I enjoy providing individual clinical supervision for emerging clinicians and have been an approved supervisor in Washington State since 2015.